Cute hipster and interior designer Michael doesn’t do love—not after his ex screwed him over. Sex is a different story, though, and the gentle giant who’s painting the mural in the old mansion they’re restoring might be perfect hookup material. Gil is just Michael’s type with his solid muscle, wicked sense of humor, and the hazel eyes that seem to see into Michael’s soul.

Trouble is, Gil does do love. He wants romance and forever, and he’s set his sights firmly on Michael. Michael’s not going there again.

Yet when Michael is the victim of a vandal who’s been plaguing the men working for Delta Restoration, Renovation, and Design, Gil is the first person he calls. No matter how he fights it, it’s becoming harder and harder to deny he’s crazy about the guy—even if that thought terrifies him. But the true fear sets in when the criminal behavior escalates, and Michael realizes he might have lost the chance to tell Gil how he feels—forever.

Why you should read it: Ever since I first read David, Renewed, I’ve been looking forward to the next story about the hunky artisans and skilled building restorers that make up the Delta Restoration company. These men banded together to drum up business for each other after being shut out of a lot of bids because they are gay. In the first book David bought an old house that needed a lot of repairs and found Jackson, a handyman who is also a capable contractor. David and Jackson fell in love and their story led to the next book in the series, Michael, Reinvented.

Michael is David’s best friend and assistant at an interior decoration firm. Michael has a past he has only revealed to David and it gets in the way of Michael ever forming an ongoing relationship with another man, or so Michael thinks.

Gil, a multitalented painter, has his eyes on Michael and is persistent in pursuing his goal of making Michael see him as something more than a one-night stand. Michael is extremely resistant and keeps pushing Gil away, for reasons he won’t tell anyone else. It takes a dark threat and a tragedy to make Michael realize what he is giving up by clinging to the past.

I love Diana Copland’s style of writing. She develops characters the reader can’t forget after the story has ended, and her plots always have that little extra something that turns the story on its ear, making it impossible to put the book down. She does her research, so a technical or artistic scene reads true and keeps the reader in the story, as if it were really happening to people you know. Michael, Reinvented can easily be read as a stand-alone, but I recommend reading David, Renewed first to get to know the back story of the characters, both main and secondary. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series so very much.

Becky Condit is a widow, mother of three and grandmother of 10 who reads all kinds of books, but her go-to comfort books are romances. She reads and reviews more than 250 books a year, so you won’t often find her without her iPad in hand, but when you do, she’ll probably be gardening or spending time with her family.